Day 6 - Thursday 3/24/16

Pedro is the pastor of the church and the principal of the tiny elementary school in the community of Via Nueva on the outskirts of Tegucigalpa.  Both church and school operate under the name Institución Evangelica Jesucristo Pentecostés. Pastor Pedro's vision for the church is to see it grow into a lighthouse in the community that includes not only an elementary school (already in operation), but a Bible college as well.  

Our route from Cofradia took us through the heart of the capital city where we purchased a car battery at PriceMart (think Costco or Sam's Club). Traffic through the city today was remarkably light.  Most business have already closed for the long holiday weekend of Viernes Santos (Good/Holy Friday) and Easter.

A 290 gallon tank was in place, full of water, and waiting for us when we arrived on Thursday morning. 

   

Doctor Jorge and his wife Ivonne were already at the church, too.  They were playing and dancing with a group of children and singing at the top of their lungs.  Kasey and Susanna jumped right in and were soon teaching about bacteria and germs with creative skits, songs and other activities.

Several church members pitched in to construct a Tippy Tap handwashing station beside the church building.  By lunch time, the children were lined up to take their turn washing their hands and singing "Lava Tus Manos Con Much Jabón".

Pastor Pedro and several other church members spent the day working with Spencer and Dr. Jorge making sure they understood the ins and outs of safely purifying drinking water with the WaterStep M-100 chlorine generator.

We were treated to a delightful mid-day meal of fried chicken, fries and salad prepared by the pastor's wife and another church member.

The afternoon was filled with more games and an appearance by the ever-popular Anna Maria Diarrhea doll. 

At 4:00 pm, the purified water was ready to drink and we enjoyed a refreshing taste. It is always interesting to see people's reaction to the purified water which has a tiny hint of chlorine taste and smell.  If you live in the United States, you are used to this and probably don’t notice it. Those who are not used to it usually react with surprise. Some like it. Some don’t. But, everyone likes drinking water that will not make them sick!

Pastor Pedro presented each member of the team with a full-color, glossy certificate of appreciation for "blessing" them with the gift of safe water.

We were all laughing and having a good time by 6:00 p.m. when each of the church volunteers "passed" Spencer's test by putting the system through its paces unassisted. We prayed together one last time and asked God to continue to bless this community through the lives of these dedicated servants.

Teresa came just as we were leaving because she heard the church had water that was safe to drink!  Her family has not been drinking water because it makes them sick. She kept saying, “such a blessing”

Tomorrow, we will be "turistas" and visit a city of Comayagua to see the famous street paintings made of dyed sawdust, seeds, rice and other natural products depicting the passion of Christ (not unlike the materials used to decorate the Rose Bowl Parade floats).  Stayed tuned for more pictures!